OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University men's wrestling fell 27-14 to NCAA Division II foe Colorado State-Pueblo on Wednesday evening at Abe Lemons Arena.
The Stars, ranked 12th in the NAIA, led Colorado State-Pueblo 14-11 after six matches, but could not maintain the scoring edge to close the dual. OCU gave up three consecutive extra-point matches to secure the dual victory for the 25th-ranked Thunderwolves.
“We had the momentum going and we didn't carry through at 141 and 149,” OCU coach Archie Randall said. “We should have won at 157; that was an upset. Whenever you have an upset at a weight you should have won it's difficult to recover.”
OCU had three individual winners in the dual, all for extra points.
Sterling Wright, a freshman from Norman, Okla., recorded a pin after falling behind 7-1 after the first period. Wright held his opponent scoreless in the second period and fought back to tie the match at 7-7 heading into the final round. Twenty seconds into the third period, Wright took control of Ryan Kirby and forced the fall.
Kidd Gomez, a sophomore from Noble, Okla., notched an extra point win with eight takedowns in his match with Lyle Evans. Gomez, ranked third in the NAIA at 125, beat Evans 18-7 in their high-scoring bout.
Jake Mabry, a senior from Gig Harbor, Wash., earned a 10-2 major decision over Joe Giron. Mabry started slow and held a slim 2-0 lead after the first two periods. Mabry added three takedowns, including one nifty single-leg move in the third period to widen the gap and secure the extra-point victory.
“I thought our younger kids wrestled well, Sterling and Kidd,” Randall said. “Our senior, Mabry, wrestled well too, but our sophomores and juniors just didn't perform tonight.”
OCU takes to the mats next against Central Oklahoma, ranked 11th in the NCAA Division II. The dual will take place at Hamilton Field House in Edmond, Okla., on Dec. 9 at 7 p.m.
COLORADO STATE-PUEBLO 27
OKLAHOMA CITY 14
157: Matt Addington, CSUP, tech. fall Mark Meyer, 18-3 (5:48)
